Put the Q-tips down! Earwax is good for you

The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery has updated its guidelines to tell us exactly why we should never clean our ears ourselves.

2017/01/05

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ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA — You know that eargasm you get when you stick a cotton swab in your ear and pull out a piece of wax like candy floss?

Well, according to the medical experts, you really should stop doing that.

For a long time now doctors have advised against cleaning our ears with cotton swabs. But on Tuesday, the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery updated its guidelines to tell us exactly why we should never clean our ears ourselves.

Cerumen, also known as earwax, is a natural substance made up of oil, hair and dead skin cells. Doctors say using cotton swabs to clean ears can damage the eardrums and push earwax too deep inside the ear, where it can become clogged.